Ludwigia repens

Care at a glance

Overview

A beginner friendly red-tinged stem plant for the mid-ground and background, planted stem by stem into the substrate. It will grow green under modest light without CO2, but to pull out the orange and red tones you want medium to high light, CO2 helps, and a good iron and micronutrient dosing. Topping and replanting the cut tops thickens the stand; lower leaves can drop if the upper growth shades them, so trim before it gets too tall.

In the wild

Native to the southern United States and into Central America, where it grows in slow streams, ponds, ditches and swampy margins. It is a marginal plant that creeps and roots along wet ground when emersed and grows upright when submersed. Emersed leaves tend to sit green, while the submersed form develops the olive-to-red coloring it is grown for.

Good to know

Belongs to the evening primrose family, Onagraceae. Like other Ludwigia it has opposite leaves on the stem and roots readily from leaf nodes, which is why broken pieces establish so easily. The underside of the leaf often flushes red while the top stays greener, a hallmark of the species. Sold under many trade names and easily mixed up with Ludwigia palustris and the various red Ludwigia cultivars.

Did you know

The redder it gets, the more it is signaling stress in a useful way. Under strong light Ludwigia repens builds red anthocyanin pigments as a kind of sunscreen, so the intense color hobbyists prize is the plant protecting itself from high light.

Related plants

• 

  Ludwigia palustris

  Ludwigia palustris

  Medium lightBackground19.7 in (50 cm)

• 

  Ludwigia glandulosa

  Ludwigia glandulosa

  High lightBackground15.7 in (40 cm)

• 

  Ludwigia Pantanal

  Ludwigia inclinata var. verticillata 'Pantanal'

  High lightBackground15.7 in (40 cm)
• Ludwigia Cuba

  Ludwigia inclinata var. verticillata 'Cuba'

  High lightBackground15.7 in (40 cm)

• 

  Ludwigia arcuata

  Ludwigia arcuata

  High lightMidground19.7 in (50 cm)

• 

  Ludwigia Rubin

  Ludwigia repens 'Rubin'

  Medium lightMidground19.7 in (50 cm)